Rally attendees push Gordon to lift restrictions

The state will lift its restrictions on businesses and gatherings when it appears prudent to do so, Gov. Mark Gordon told a group of protesters at the state Capitol on Monday.

Gordon’s talk with the “Rally for the Choice to Work” protesters came as the number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Wyoming grew to 317 with the discovery of four new cases in two counties.

The protesters had gathered for a rally to encourage the state to lift the restrictions put into place in March to slow the spread of coronavirus.

Rally participants, who came to Cheyenne from across the state, said Gordon’s decision to leave the restrictions in place until at least April 30 will harm the economy.

“Everyone’s income supports their family, and there’s a way to do this without shutting the whole economy down,” said Ben Zeller, a small business owner from Cody.

“Today, you’re hearing people who want the choice to go back to work and get this economy moving in the right direction,” said M. Lee Hasenauer, a former Laramie County commissioner.

But Gordon declined to set an exact date for the restrictions to end, saying it would be best to make sure the coronavirus no longer poses a safety threat before taking such action.

“When we go back to work, we want to make sure we can continue to work,” he said.

Supporters of removing the restricts also gathered in Jackson’s Town Square on Monday to discuss Teton County’s “stay-at-home” order with passers by.

Bob Culver, a member of the Jackson Hole Tea Party, which organized the gathering, said the event was not a protest.

“I didn’t organize a protest or a demonstration,” he said. “I just wanted people to come out and feel free to talk.”

Wyoming officials have resisted issuing a statewide “stay-at-home” order, instead approving orders closing schools and businesses likely to attract more than 10 people, closing businesses that provide personal services such as hair salons and tattoo parlors and prohibiting gatherings of 10 or more people.

The state was the last in the nation to record a death attributed to the coronavirus and the last to see confirmed cases top 300.

As of Monday, Wyoming’s coronavirus case count stood at 317, with four new cases being detected in two counties on Monday.

The Wyoming Department of Health, in its daily coronavirus update, also said the number of people to recover from the coronavirus increased by four to bring the total to 237. Of the recoveries, 170 have been confirmed by a laboratory and 67 are considered “probable.”